Ford was magnanimous in the wake of Elliott’s concession: “Leadership races can be tough on political parties, and for the candidates that compete in them,” he said in an official statement. “For me, there was no tougher part than running against Christine Elliot [sic]. I have been fortunate to call her my friend over the last two decades, and with good reason.”

One group taking a measure of credit for Ford’s win: the religious right. In an email, Campaign Life Coalition said it recruited more than 9,000 PC party memberships on behalf of social conservative candidate Tanya Granic Allen, and asked supporters to rank Ford second on their ballots after Allen. “Their votes clearly played a large part in Doug Ford’s winning campaign,” the organization stated. The CLC said it expects Ford to repeal the “radical” sex-ed curriculum introduced under Wynne, support parental notification legislation for teens planning to have abortions, and protect free speech and conscience rights (presumably around protesting abortions near abortion clinics and allowing medical personnel to refuse to assist women in obtaining abortions).

Both Premier Kathleen Wynne and NDP leader Andrea Horwath congratulated Ford on his victory. But attacks quickly followed. “There’s a stark choice for voters on June 7,” Wynne tweeted Sunday afternoon. “They will choose between Conservatives who want to slash spending just when families need it the most, and an Ontario Liberal Party that believes government is a force for good & knows that now is the time to invest in care.” In a press release, the NDP said Ford wants to cut and privatize services everyday people count on. In an allusion to the chaotic PC leadership race, the statement went on to say that “a party unable to govern itself can’t be trusted to govern Ontario,” and pointed out that Ford himself (when it was unclear he would win) called the PC voting process “scandalous” and “ridiculous.”

What to watch for

Wynne will address a very important constituency of potential voters when she speaks to the Ontario Elementary Catholic Teachers’ Association Annual General Meeting this morning. NDP leader Andrea Horwath spoke to the same gathering on Sunday.

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